Okay, so the decorations are down, the new calendars up, the fridge cleaned out, and today was back to the day job. Here’s the holiday in review:

Most boring task over holidays: cleaned closets and caught up on schoolwork.
Most time spent: online sorting out book promotion and/or shovelling driveway
Best present: Grind and brew coffeemaker from mom
Best unexpected treat: Demon kitty consented to sleep in my lap
Worst moment: Outlook going spazz and mailing multiple copies of newsletter
Best social: New Year’s Eve
Best food discovery: olive tapenade
Main writing accomplishment: drafted two book outlines
Main writing surprise: one outline for a book I didn’t expect
Best read: Special Topics in Calamity Physics by Marisha Pessl
Biggest disappointment: having $, going to the mall, and finding nothing to buy
Biggest relief: Car repair half of what I expected
Best warm fuzzy: 5-ribbon review from Romance Junkies

And let’s just say that back at work there was plenty to keep me from getting bored …

First of all, we have special guest Jessica Andersen at the Silk and Shadows blog today (www.SilkandShadows.com). Drop by to leave a comment and you’ll be automatically entered for a prize in our weekly draw!

Second, I was cleaning up the mountains of paper in my personal batcave and discovered an article I’d saved:

The gist is that a University of Victoria professor, Paul Zehr, has written a book called The Possibility of a Superhero. Zehr is a prof of kinesiology and neuroscience. He’s examining the ability of the human body to achieve the kind of strength, agility, and endurance needed to do the caped crusader schtick. Batman doesn’t have superpowers per se (just lots of R&D cash), so it would be theoretically possible to pull off the things he does. Of course, one’s body would wear out very quickly, just like a pro athlete’s.

Interesting stuff, but I’d be happy if I could just make it to the gym on a regular basis! Instead, I’m drinking coffee and watching the rain.

I can’t say that it never snows on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, but usually it’s a half-hearted affair that melts in a few hours. Not this time. It’s cold, it’s windy, it’s icy and nipping at your nose. It snowed enough that it took me over an hour to shovel the sidewalks (times when corner lots aren’t so cool) and there’s more promised. And here I was complaining that I couldn’t find the Yuletide spirit.
On the other hand, the timing for the start of the cold weather was pretty good. I went to a movie and dinner with a friend on Saturday and the snow held off until I was driving home. I beat the worst of it by about a half hour.
The movie was Twilight. I was pleasantly surprised, since adaptations are tricky. I liked the actors they chose for most of the cast, especially Jacob. I think they cut out quite a bit (especially the werewolf story), but I might be forgetting what was in which book. The interplay between the characters was sensitively done for a Hollywood film. My one quibble was the vampire make-up, which didn’t work for me, but that was a fairly minor thing compared to what went well. I really liked the portrayal of Bella and her dad. Fabulous scenery—they really capture the magnificence of the rural northwest and it’s always cool to think – wait, I know that place …
So I’m glad I had my night out before getting grounded by the ice. The main roads are okay, but the sidestreets will be like glass for a few days and no place for a car without snow tyres.
My favourite vignette this morning was watching a peacock trying to cross the ice in the park. It looked like an Ice Capades skater in full regalia, coasting along and using its tail like a rudder.

Okay, so this weekend was The Great Holiday Shopping Adventure, Part Two. That went pretty much as one would imagine.
The more interesting bit was rattling around the north part of the peninsula with my resident expert on the library system. I’m planning to write a book proposal that involves a library, so I wanted to get the mechanics of their daily chores right. I thought I’d start by looking at a bunch of branches and, yup, they’re all a little bit different. They all have their own “feel.” The staff members were very gracious. Being shepherded by one of their own helped, I’m sure, but just the same they let me poke around the back and ask dumb questions and stuff. Much appreciated.
It was a beautifully foggy day. The atmosphere prompted us to talk about some of the supposedly haunted places in town. I say supposedly because I’ve never checked into most of them … I’m always a bit cautious about what’s been inflated for the sake of the tourist brochures.
I do believe in hauntings—though what they are, exactly, I won’t venture to say beyond “energy that once in a while seems to want to interact”. As an old town in and around a lot of water, we seem to get more than our fair share of spooky. Truth be told, though, after a while it’s just part of the landscape. If you look for stuff, you’ll find it, but most of the time it’s easily ignored, kind of like sparrows or squirrels.

Mr. H., the tabby who thought he was James Dean, was sent to join his brother in the great kitty playground in the sky.

I was one of his “moms” for five years, from kittenhood to his prime. He went on to other adventures, but always allowed my adoration with good grace. He was one of those chunky cats who tried all the Siamese acrobatics and ended up crashing around like a little striped bulldozer, ornaments scattering in his wake. He liked chewing buttons, hiding under scatter rugs and never met a piece of kibble he didn’t like. More a good-time boy than a scholar, he was always affectionate and ready to play.

I was sorry to see his passing, but it was as good and loving as humans could make it. It’s a hard call to know when enough is enough, and I was grateful that this time the decision was not mine to make. He could have gone on, but there was a lot of discomfort. I think a final, quiet afternoon nap was the right choice.
Cats deal with these occasions better than people. They do what they have to do and move on. We did the best we could to honour his contribution to our happiness, with single malt and a viewing of the Fellowship of the Ring.

So, while I had my head buried in a manuscript, the world of commerce evidently marched along to the Christmas season. This little trick of the calendar struck me over the head as I emerged from my cave, blinking at the bright, tinselly world like a grumpy grizzly.

How did the year fast-forward like this?

Anyway, spent the weekend wading the rapids of rampant consumerism. Went to a craft fair. Went to a few malls. Got a few things off the shopping list as well as mundane tasks like buying a new watch band. I’m not caught up, but at least I’m less far behind!

The initial production on the sequel to RAVENOUS is complete. That is, the author has proposed, and now the editor will dispose. There bound to be some changes. There always are.

I’m sad, because I really enjoyed spending time with my characters, particularly my sarcastic hero. It’s an emotional wrench when the manuscript leaves. Of course, it’s going to come back forty thousand times until I’m heartily sick of it but, for now, I feel all empty nesty and woebegone.

The book is (at least in this point of time) called SCORCHED. As both my editor and I like the title, I’m hoping it stays.

Tonight I’m going out for dinner. Tomorrow—I have to look at the list that starts “when the book is done …”